RQ-4 GLOBAL HAWK

Contents• Introduction• Development• Euro Hawk • Design• Variants• Specifications• Performance

Introduction• The Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk is an unmanned

aerial vehicle (UAV) surveillance aircraft.• It can survey as much as 40,000 square miles (100,000 km2) of

terrain a day.• The Global Hawk is operated by the United States Air

Force and U.S. Navy.• It is used as a high-altitude platform for surveillance and

security.• The U.S. Navy has developed the Global Hawk into the MQ-4C

Triton version for maritime surveillance.

Development

• The Global Hawk took its first flight on 28 February 1998.• The first seven aircraft were built under the Advanced Concept

Technology Demonstration (ACTD) program, sponsored by DARPA.

• Nine production Block 10 aircraft, sometimes referred to as RQ-4A, were produced; of these, two were sold to the US Navy and an additional two were deployed to Iraq to support operations there.

• First flight of the Block 20 from the USAF Plant 42 in Palmdale, California to Edwards Air Force Base took place on 1 March 2007.

• Developmental testing of Block 20 took place in 2008.

EuroHawk

• The German Air Force (Luftwaffe) ordered a variant of the RQ-4B, to be equipped with a customized sensor suit designated EuroHawk.

• The aircraft was based on the RQ-4B Block 20/30/40 and was to be equipped with an EADS-built SIGINT package.

• The EuroHawk was officially rolled out on 8 October 2009 and its first flight took place on 29 June 2010.

• On 8 August 2013, the EuroHawk set an endurance record by flying continuously in European airspace for 25.3 hours, reaching an altitude of 58,600 feet (17,900 m).

• It was the longest flight by an unrefueled UAS weighing more than 30,000 lb (14,000 kg) in European skies.

Design

• The Global Hawk UAV system comprises the RQ-4 air vehicle, which is outfitted with various equipment such as sensor packages and communication systems.

• A ground element consisting of a Launch and Recovery Element (LRE), and a Mission Control Element (MCE) with ground communications equipment.

• Each RQ-4 air vehicle is powered by an Allison Rolls-Royce AE3007H turbofan engine with 7,050 lbf (31.4 kN) thrust, and carries a payload of 2,000 pounds (910 kilograms).

• The fuselage comprises an aluminum, semi-monocoque construction; the wings are made of lightweight high-strength composite materials.

Variants

• RQ-4A• RQ-4B• RQ-4E Euro Hawk• EQ-4B• Autonomous tanker variant• Model 396

Specifications

• Crew: 0 onboard (3 remote: LRE pilot; MCE pilot and sensor operator)

• Length: 47.6 ft (14.5 m)• Wingspan: 130.9 ft (39.9 m)• Height: 15.3 ft (4.7 m)• Empty weight: 14,950 lb (6,781 kg)• Gross weight: 32,250 lb (14,628 kg)• Powerplant: 1 × Rolls-Royce F137-RR-100 turbofan engine,

7,600 lbf (34 kN) thrust

Performance• Cruise speed: 357 mph (310 kn; 575 km/h)• Range: 8,700 mi (7,560 nmi; 14,001 km)• Endurance: 28 hours• Service ceiling: 60,000 ft (18,288 m)

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